70 METAMORPHOSIS 



Ants, for instance, although they do not build 

 the wonderful cells of the honey-bee and thewasp, 

 take extraordinary care of the young, helpless 

 larvae. Anyone who has cut open an ant's nest 

 for the sake of the so-called " eggs," must have 

 noticed that the insects, as soon as they realise 

 that a catastrophe has happened, commence 

 hurriedly to remove the eggs, which are really 

 the pupa, or ants in the quiescent stage, down 

 below. 



I was once witness of a curious incident con- 

 nected with this. I particularly wanted to procure 

 some ants' eggs to feed a spotted woodpecker, and 

 not being able to puchase them, I sallied into our 

 forest to find them. Two species of ant are very 

 fond of burrowing in decayed trees, which lie 

 about the woods there very commonly, and after 

 ripping off the bark of one or two, I came suddenly 

 upon a nest of the larger brown variety, whose eggs 

 are a trifle bigger than those of the smaller black 

 kind, and not so pure in colour. Into a tin I had 

 brought with me, I scooped a quantity of the eggs, 

 and of necessity carried off some of the ants as 

 well, as, had I waited until they were clear of the 

 tin, the eggs would have gone as well. I wandered 

 on a little further, and ultimately came across a 

 nest of the smaller black variety. It was situated 

 u nder the bark of a fallen tree, and, on tearing off 

 a portion of this bark, I disclosed a considerable 

 quantity of eggs. I set down my tin, scooped a 



